A time trade-off study to determine health-state utilities of transplant recipients with refractory cytomegalovirus infection with or without resistance.

BACKGROUND: Health-state utility values (HSUVs) for post-transplant refractory cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection (with or without resistance [R/R]) were determined using a time trade-off (TTO) survey completed by 1,020 members of the UK general public. METHODS: Existing literature and qualitative interviews with clinicians experienced in treating R/R CMV were used to develop initial draft vignettes of health states. The vignettes were refined to describe three clinical states of R/R CMV: clinically significant and symptomatic (CS-symptomatic CMV); clinically significant and asymptomatic (CS-asymptomatic CMV); and non-clinically significant (non-CS CMV). Each clinical state was valued independently and combined with three events of interest: graft-versus-host disease; kidney graft loss; and lung graft loss to generate twelve vignettes. The final vignettes were evaluated by a sample of the UK general public using an online TTO survey. Exclusion criteria were applied to the final data to ensure that responses included in the analysis met pre-defined quality control criteria. RESULTS: Overall, 738 participants met the inclusion criteria and were included in the analysis. The sample was representative of the UK general population in terms of age and sex. Non-CS CMV had the highest mean HSUV (95% confidence interval) (0.815 [0.791, 0.839]), followed by CS-asymptomatic CMV (0.635 [0.602, 0.669]), and CS-symptomatic CMV (0.443 [0.404, 0.482]). CS-symptomatic CMV with lung graft loss had the lowest mean HSUV (0.289), with none of the health states considered on average worse than dead. CONCLUSIONS: Post transplant R/R CMV has substantial impact on the health-related quality of life of patients. The utility values obtained in this study may be used to support economic evaluations of therapies for R/R CMV infection.

Health-related quality of life in mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in the UK: a cross-sectional study from pre- to post-infection.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to estimate the impact of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) over time among individuals in the United Kingdom, adding to the evidence base that had focussed on severe COVID-19. METHODS: A bespoke online survey was administered to individuals who self-reported a positive COVID-19 test. An amended version of a validated generic HRQoL instrument (EQ-5D-5L) was used to measure HRQoL retrospectively at different timepoints over the course of an infection: pre-COVID-19, acute COVID-19, and long COVID. In addition, HRQoL post-COVID-19 was captured by the original EQ-5D-5L questionnaire. A mixed-effects model was used to estimate changes in HRQoL over time, adjusted for a range of variables correlated with HRQoL. RESULTS: The study recruited 406 participants: (i) 300 adults and 53 adolescents with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 who had not been hospitalised for COVID-19 during acute COVID-19, and (ii) 53 adults who had been hospitalised for COVID-19 in the acute phase and who had been recruited for validation purposes. Data were collected between January and April 2022. Among participants included in the base-case analysis, EQ-5D-5L utility scores were lower during both acute COVID-19 (ß=-0.080, p = 0.001) and long COVID (ß=-0.072, p < 0.001) compared to pre COVID-19. In addition, EQ-5D-5L utility scores post-COVID-19 were found to be similar to the EQ-5D-5L utility scores before COVID-19, including for patients who had been hospitalised for COVID-19 during the acute phase or for those who had experienced long COVID. Moreover, being hospitalised in the acute phase was associated with additional utility decrements during both acute COVID-19 (ß=-0.147, p = 0.026) and long (ß=-0.186, p < 0.001) COVID. CONCLUSION: Patients perceived their HRQoL to have varied significantly over the course of a mild-to-moderate COVID-19 infection. However, HRQoL was found to return to pre-COVID-19 levels, even for patients who had been hospitalised for COVID-19 during the acute phase or for those who had experienced long COVID.

Biochar and nano biochar: Enhancing salt resilience in plants and soil while mitigating greenhouse gas emissions: A comprehensive review.

Salinity stress poses a significant challenge to agriculture, impacting soil health, plant growth and contributing to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In response to these intertwined challenges, the use of biochar and its nanoscale counterpart, nano-biochar, has gained increasing attention. This comprehensive review explores the heterogeneous role of biochar and nano-biochar in enhancing salt resilience in plants and soil while concurrently mitigating GHG emissions. The review discusses the effects of these amendments on soil physicochemical properties, improved water and nutrient uptake, reduced oxidative damage, enhanced growth and the alternation of soil microbial communities, enhance soil fertility and resilience. Furthermore, it examines their impact on plant growth, ion homeostasis, osmotic adjustment and plant stress tolerance, promoting plant development under salinity stress conditions. Emphasis is placed on the potential of biochar and nano-biochar to influence soil microbial activities, leading to altered emissions of GHG emissions, particularly nitrous oxide(N2O) and methane(CH4), contributing to climate change mitigation. The comprehensive synthesis of current research findings in this review provides insights into the multifunctional applications of biochar and nano-biochar, highlighting their potential to address salinity stress in agriculture and their role in sustainable soil and environmental management. Moreover, it identifies areas for further investigation, aiming to enhance our understanding of the intricate interplay between biochar, nano-biochar, soil, plants, and greenhouse gas emissions.

Broad-angle coherent perfect absorption-lasing and super-collimation in two-dimensional non-Hermitian photonic crystals.

Coherent perfect absorption-lasing (CPAL) and collimation have been intensively studied for normal and small angle wave incidence. Here, we report a two-dimensional non-Hermitian photonic crystal for broad-angle CPAL and super-collimation. The synergy of a nonsymmorphic glide symmetry of the lattice, gain-loss modulation and an optimization of unit cell induces a parity-time phase transition in the band structure along the Brillouin zone boundary. The transition points, i.e., the exceptional points, form a slab-like contour, with nearly zero dispersion in both real and imaginary parts of the band structure. Such dispersionless band structure significantly enhances the range of incident angle for CPAL and collimation.

Investigation and development of transient production process for porcine circovirus Type-2 (PCV2) capsid protein in HEK293F cells.

Porcine circovirus type-2 capsid protein contains a major immunodominant epitope used as a subunit vaccine. Transient expression in mammalian cells is an efficient process for producing recombinant proteins. However, there is still a lack of research on the efficient production of virus capsid proteins in mammalian cells. Here we present a comprehensive study to investigate and optimize the production process of a model "difficult-to-express" virus capsid protein, PCV2 capsid protein in HEK293F transient expression system. The study evaluated the transient expression of PCV2 capsid protein in the mammalian cell line HEK293F and investigated the subcellular distribution by confocal microscopy. In addition, the RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) was used to detect the differential expression of genes after cells transfected with pEGFP-N1-Capsid or empty vectors. The analysis revealed that the PCV2 capsid gene affected a panel of differential genes of HEK293F cells involved in protein folding, stress response, and translation process, such as SHP90ß, GRP78, HSP47, and eIF4A. An integrated strategy of protein engineering combined with VPA addition was applied to promote the expression of PCV2 capsid protein in HEK293F. Moreover, this study significantly increased the production of the engineered PCV2 capsid protein in HEK293F cells, reaching a yield of 8.7 mg/L. Conclusively, this study may provide deep insight for other "difficult-to-express" virus capsid proteins in the mammalian cell system.

Cost-utility of real-time continuous glucose monitoring versus self-monitoring of blood glucose and intermittently scanned continuous glucose monitoring in people with type 1 diabetes receiving multiple daily insulin injections in Denmark.

AIMS: To determine the cost-effectiveness of the Dexcom G6 real-time continuous glucose monitoring (rt-CGM) system compared with both the self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) and the Abbott FreeStyle Libre 1 and 2 intermittently scanned CGM (is-CGM) devices in people with type 1 diabetes receiving multiple daily insulin injections in Denmark. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The analysis was performed using the IQVIA Core Diabetes Model, which associates rt-CGM use with glycated haemoglobin reductions of 0.6% and 0.36% based on data from the DIAMOND and ALERTT1 trials, respectively, compared with SMBG and is-CGM use. The analysis was performed from the payer perspective over a 50-year time horizon; future costs and clinical outcomes were discounted at 4% per annum. RESULTS: The use of rt-CGM was associated with an incremental gain of 1.37 quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) versus SMBG. Total mean lifetime costs were Danish Krone (DKK) 894 535 for rt-CGM and DKK 823 474 for SMBG, resulting in an incremental cost-utility ratio of DKK 51 918 per QALY gained versus SMBG. Compared with is-CGM, the use of rt-CGM led to a gain of 0.87 QALYs and higher mean lifetime costs resulting in an incremental cost-utility ratio of DKK 40 879 to DKK 34 367 per QALY gained. CONCLUSIONS: In Denmark, the rt-CGM was projected to be highly cost-effective versus both SMBG and is-CGM, based on a willingness-to-pay threshold of 1× per capita gross domestic product per QALY gained. These findings may help inform future policies to address regional disparities in access to rt-CGM.

Simultaneous immobilization of lead and arsenic and improved phosphorus availability in contaminated soil using biochar composite modified with hydroxyapatite and oxidation: Findings from a pot experiment.

Multi-metals/metalloids contaminated soil has received extensive attention because of their adverse health effects on the safety of the food chain and environmental health. In order to provide additional insight and aid in mitigating environmental risks, a pot experiment was directed to assess the impacts of biochars derived from rice straw (BC), and modified biochars i-e., hydroxyapatite modified (HAP-BC) and oxidized biochars (Ox-BC) on the redistribution, phytoavailability and bioavailability of phosphorus (P), lead (Pb), and Arsenic (As), as well as their effects on the growth of maize (Zea mays L.) in a Lead (Pb)/Arsenic (As) contaminated soil. The results showed that HAP-BC increased the soil total and available P, compared with raw biochar and control treatment. HAP-BC improved soil properties by elevating soil pH and electric conductivity (EC). The Hedley fractionation scheme revealed that HAP-BC enhanced the labile and moderately labile P species in soil. Both HAP-BC and Ox-BC assisted in the P build-up in plant roots and shoots. The BCR (European Community Bureau of Reference) sequential extraction data for Pb and As in soil showed the pronounced effects of HAP-BC towards the transformation of labile Pb and As forms into more stable species. Compared with control, HAP-BC significantly (P ≤ 0.05) decreased the DTPA-extractable Pb and As by 55% and 28%, respectively, subsequently, resulting in reduced Pb and As plant uptakes. HAP-BC application increased the plant fresh and dry root/shoot biomass by 239%, 72%, 222% and 190%, respectively. The Pb/As immobilization by HAP-BC was mainly driven by precipitation, ion exchange and surface complexation mechanisms in soil. In general, HAP-BC application indicated a great capability to be employed as an effective alternative soil amendment for improving P acquisition in soil, simultaneously immobilizing Pb and As in the soil-plant systems.

New Insights into Molecular Mechanisms Underlying Neurodegenerative Disorders.

As a large and heterogeneous group of disorders, neurodegenerative diseases are characterized by the progressive loss of structure or function in neurons, finally leading to neuronal death. Neurodegenerative diseases cause serious threat to a patient's quality of life and the most common are Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. Currently, little is known of the detailed etiology of these disorders; as such, there are no effective treatments available. Furthermore, the lack of targeted, effective, and resolvable therapy for neurodegenerative diseases, represents an expanding research field for the discovery of new therapeutic strategies. Investigations of the potential pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases will become the basis of preventing the occurrence and development of neurodegenerative diseases and finding effective therapies. Existing theories and mechanisms, such as genetic and environmental factors, abnormal protein accumulation, and oxidative stress, are intricately associated with each other. However, there is no molecular theory that can entirely explain the pathological processes underlying neurodegenerative diseases. Due to the development of experimental technology and the support of multidisciplinary integration, it has been possible to perform more in-depth research on potential targets for neurodegenerative diseases and there have been many exciting discoveries in terms of original theories and underlying mechanisms. With this review, we intend to review the existing literature and provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative diseases.

On Coverage of Critical Nodes in UAV-Assisted Emergency Networks.

Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-assisted networks ensure agile and flexible solutions based on the inherent attributes of mobility and altitude adaptation. These features render them suitable for emergency search and rescue operations. Emergency networks (ENs) differ from conventional networks. They often encounter nodes with vital information, i.e., critical nodes (CNs). The efficacy of search and rescue operations highly depends on the eminent coverage of critical nodes to retrieve crucial data. In a UAV-assisted EN, the information delivery from these critical nodes can be ensured through quality-of-service (QoS) guarantees, such as capacity and age of information (AoI). In this work, optimized UAV placement for critical nodes in emergency networks is studied. Two different optimization problems, namely capacity maximization and age of information minimization, are formulated based on the nature of node criticality. Capacity maximization provides general QoS enhancement for critical nodes, whereas AoI is focused on nodes carrying critical information. Simulations carried out in this paper aim to find the optimal placement for each problem based on a two-step approach. At first, the disaster region is partitioned based on CNs' aggregation. Reinforcement learning (RL) is then applied to observe optimal placement. Finally, network coverage over optimal UAV(s) placement is studied for two scenarios, i.e., network-centric and user-centric. In addition to providing coverage to critical nodes, the proposed scheme also ensures maximum coverage for all on-scene available devices (OSAs).

A systematic review on the bioremediation of metal contaminated soils using biochar and slag: current status and future outlook.

Heavy metals contaminated soils are posing severe threats to food safety worldwide. Heavy metals absorbed by plant roots from contaminated soils lead to severe plant development issues and a reduction in crop yield and growth. The global population is growing, and the demand for food is increasing. Therefore, it is critical to identify soil remediation strategies that are efficient, economical, and environment friendly. The use of biochar and slag as passivators represents a promising approach among various physicochemical and biological strategies due to their efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and low environmental impact. These passivators employ diverse mechanisms to reduce the bioavailability of metals in contaminated soils, thereby improving crop growth and productivity. Although studies have shown the effectiveness of different passivators, further research is needed globally as this field is still in its early stages. This review sheds light on the innovative utilization of biochar and slag as sustainable strategies for heavy metal remediation, emphasizing their novelty and potential for practical applications. Based on the findings, research gaps have been identified and future research directions proposed to enable the full potential of passivators to be utilized effectively and efficiently under controlled and field conditions.

Pseudorabies virus infection induces endoplasmic reticulum stress and unfolded protein response in suspension-cultured BHK-21 cells.

Viral infections cause endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and subsequently unfolded protein response (UPR) which restores ER homeostasis. In this study, levels of proteins or transcription of three UPR pathways were examined in suspension-cultured BHK-21 cells to investigate Pseudorabies virus (PRV) infection-induced ER stress, in which glucose-related proteins 78 kD and 94 kD (GRP78 and GRP94) were upregulated. The downstream double-stranded RNA-activated protein kinase-like ER kinase (PERK) pathway was activated with upregulation of ATF4, CHOP, and GADD34, and the inositol requiring kinase 1 (IRE1) pathway was triggered by the splicing of X box-binding protein 1 (XBP1) mRNA and the enhanced expression of p58IPK and EDEM. Furthermore, our results showed that the ER stress, induced by 0.005 µM thapsigargin, promoted PRV replication in suspension-cultured BHK-21 cells, and that PRV glycoprotein B (gB) overexpression triggered the PERK and IRE1 pathways.

Nano-hydroxyapatite modified biochar: Insights into the dynamic adsorption and performance of lead (II) removal from aqueous solution.

Adsorption of lead as Pb(II) using biochar is an environmentally sustainable approach to remediate this kind of pollution affecting wastewater. In this study, rice straw biochar (BC) was modified by combination with nano-hydroxy-apatite (HAP), resulting in a material designated as BC@nHAP, with enhanced adsorption performance. Based on Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analyses, it was evidenced that, after modification, HAP greatly enhanced surface functional groups (i.e., -COOH and/or -OH) of raw biochar's surface. Batch tests showed that the maximum sorption capacity of BC (63.03 mg g-1) was improved due to the modification, reaching 335.88 mg g-1 in BC@nHAP. Pseudo-second order (PSO) kinetics fitted well the adsorption data (R2 = 0.99), as well as the Langmuir isotherm model (showing an adsorption value of 335.88 mg g-1 for qe). The results of thermodynamic calculations showed that the adsorption was primarily governed by chemisorption process. FTIR spectroscopy and XPS spectrum after adsorption further confirmed that the adsorption mechanisms were ion exchange with Pb2+ and surface complexation by -OH and -COOH. In addition, BC@nHAP revealed a brilliant regeneration capability. The maximum adsorption capacity by BC@nHAP was higher than that of raw biochar or other previously reported adsorbents. Therefore, BC@nHAP could be seen as a new sorbent material with high potential for real-scale heavy metal removal from wastewater, and specifically as a capable candidate new sorbent for Pb(II) removal from wastewater, which has clear implications as regard preservation of environmental quality and public health.

A green method for removing chromium (VI) from aqueous systems using novel silicon nanoparticles: Adsorption and interaction mechanisms.

In the present study, we used the horsetail plant (Equisetum arvense) as a green source to synthesize silicon nanoparticles (GS-SiNPs), considering that it could be an effective adsorbent for removing chromium (Cr (VI)) from aqueous solutions. The characterization of GS-SiNPs was performed via Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and X-ray photo electron spectroscopy (XPS) techniques. The batch test results of Cr (VI) adsorption on GS-SiNPs showed a high adsorption capacity, reaching 87.9% of the amount added. The pseudo-second order kinetic model was able to comprehensively explain the adsorption kinetics and provided a maximum Cr (VI) adsorption capacity (Qe) of 3.28 mg g-1 (R2 = 90.68), indicating fast initial adsorption by the diffusion process. The Langmuir isotherm model fitted the experimental data, and accurately simulated the adsorption of Cr (VI) on GS-SiNPs (R2 = 97.79). FTIR and XPS spectroscopy gave further confirmation that the main mechanism was ion exchange with Cr and surface complexation through -OH and -COOH. Overall, the results of the research can be of relevance as regards a green and new alternative for the removal of Cr (VI) pollution from affected environments.

Social Network Analytics for Supervised Fraud Detection in Insurance.

Insurance fraud occurs when policyholders file claims that are exaggerated or based on intentional damages. This contribution develops a fraud detection strategy by extracting insightful information from the social network of a claim. First, we construct a network by linking claims with all their involved parties, including the policyholders, brokers, experts, and garages. Next, we establish fraud as a social phenomenon in the network and use the BiRank algorithm with a fraud-specific query vector to compute a fraud score for each claim. From the network, we extract features related to the fraud scores as well as the claims' neighborhood structure. Finally, we combine these network features with the claim-specific features and build a supervised model with fraud in motor insurance as the target variable. Although we build a model for only motor insurance, the network includes claims from all available lines of business. Our results show that models with features derived from the network perform well when detecting fraud and even outperform the models using only the classical claim-specific features. Combining network and claim-specific features further improves the performance of supervised learning models to detect fraud. The resulting model flags highly suspicions claims that need to be further investigated. Our approach provides a guided and intelligent selection of claims and contributes to a more effective fraud investigation process.

Integration of Blockchain Technology and Federated Learning in Vehicular (IoT) Networks: A Comprehensive Survey.

The Internet of Things (IoT) revitalizes the world with tremendous capabilities and potential to be utilized in vehicular networks. The Smart Transport Infrastructure (STI) era depends mainly on the IoT. Advanced machine learning (ML) techniques are being used to strengthen the STI smartness further. However, some decisions are very challenging due to the vast number of STI components and big data generated from STIs. Computation cost, communication overheads, and privacy issues are significant concerns for wide-scale ML adoption within STI. These issues can be addressed using Federated Learning (FL) and blockchain. FL can be used to address the issues of privacy preservation and handling big data generated in STI management and control. Blockchain is a distributed ledger that can store data while providing trust and integrity assurance. Blockchain can be a solution to data integrity and can add more security to the STI. This survey initially explores the vehicular network and STI in detail and sheds light on the blockchain and FL with real-world implementations. Then, FL and blockchain applications in the Vehicular Ad Hoc Network (VANET) environment from security and privacy perspectives are discussed in detail. In the end, the paper focuses on the current research challenges and future research directions related to integrating FL and blockchain for vehicular networks.

Isolation, Characterization and Anticancer Activity of Two Bioactive Compounds from Arisaema flavum (Forssk.) Schott.

Medicinal plants play important role in the public health sector worldwide. Natural products from medicinal plants are sources of unlimited opportunities for new drug leads because of their unique chemical diversity. Researchers have focused on exploring herbal products as potential sources for the treatment of cancer, cardiac and infectious diseases. Arisaema flavum (Forssk.) is an important medicinal plant found in the northwest Himalayan regions of Pakistan. It is a poisonous plant and is used as a remedy against snake bites and scorpion stings. In this study, two bioactive compounds were isolated from Arisaema flavum (Forssk.) and their anticancer activity was evaluated against human breast cancer cell line MCF-7 using an MTT assay. The crude extract of Arisaema flavum (Forssk.) was subjected to fractionation using different organic solvents in increasing order of polarity. The fraction indicating maximum activity was then taken for isolation of bioactive compounds using various chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques such as column chromatography, thin-layer chromatography (TLC), gas chromatography−mass spectrometry (GC-MS), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR). Crude extract of Arisaema flavum (Forssk.), as well as various fractions extracted in different solvents such as n-hexane, chloroform and ethyl acetate, were tested against human breast cancer cell line MCF-7 using an MTT assay. The crude extract exhibited significant dose-dependent anticancer activity with a maximum activity of 78.6% at 500 µg/mL concentration. Two compounds, hexadecanoic acid ethyl ester with molecular formula C18H36O7 and molar mass 284 and 5-Oxo-19 propyl-docosanoic acid methyl ester with molecular formula C26H50O3 and molecular mass 410, were isolated from chloroform fraction. These compounds were tested against the MCF-7cell line for cytotoxic activity and exhibited a significant (p < 0.00l) decrease in cell numbers for MCF-7 cells with IC50 of 25 µM after 48 h of treatment. Results indicated that Arisaema flavum (Forssk.) possesses compounds with cytotoxic activity that can further be exploited to develop anticancer formulations.

Inverse-design of non-Hermitian potentials for on-demand asymmetric reflectivity.

We propose a genetic algorithm-assisted inverse design approach to achieve 'on- demand' light transport in periodic and non-periodic planar structures containing dielectric and gain-loss layers. The optimization algorithm efficiently produces non-Hermitian potentials from any arbitrarily given real (or imaginary) permittivity distribution for the desired frequency selective and broadband asymmetric reflectivity. Indeed, we show that the asymmetric response is directly related to the area occupied by the obtained permittivity distribution in the complex plane. In particular, unidirectional light reflection can be designed in such a way that it switches from left to right (or vice versa) depending on the operating frequency. Moreover, such controllable unidirectional reflectivity is realized using a stack of dielectric layers while keeping the refractive index and gain-loss within realistic values. We believe this proposal will benefit the integrated photonics with frequency selective one-way communication.

Highly efficient uranium (VI) capture from aqueous solution by means of a hydroxyapatite-biochar nanocomposite: Adsorption behavior and mechanism.

The exploration and rational design of easily separable and highly efficient sorbents with the sufficient capability of retaining radioactive and toxic uranium U(VI) is paramount. In this study, a hydroxyapatite (HAP) biochar nanocomposite (BR/HAP) was successfully fabricated from rice straw biochar (BR), to be used as a new and efficient adsorbent for removing U(VI) from aqueous solution. Both BR and the BR/HAP composite were characterized via Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray photo electron spectroscopy (XPS) techniques. Batch test results showed that BR/HAP exhibited remarkably higher adsorption capacity than the raw BR. A pseudo-second order kinetic model thoroughly explained the adsorption kinetics, providing the maximum U(VI) adsorption capacities (qe) of 110.56 mg g-1 (R2 = 0.98) and 428.25 mg g-1 (R2 = 0.99), for BR and BR/HAP, respectively, which was indicative of the rate-limited sorption via diffusion or surface complexation after rapid initial adsorption steps. The Langmuir isotherm model fitted the experimental data to accurately simulate the adsorption of U(VI) onto BR and BR/HAP (R2 = 0.97 and R2 = 0.99). The thermodynamic results showed negative values for ΔG°, clearly indicating that the reaction was spontaneous, as well as positive values for ΔH° (11.04 kJ mol-1 and 28.86 kJ mol-1, respectively) and ΔS° (88.97 kJ mol-1 K-1, and 183.42 kJ mol-1 K-1), making clear the endothermic nature of U(VI) adsorption onto both sorbents, with an increase in randomness at a molecular level. FTIR spectroscopy and XPS spectrum further confirmed that the primary mechanisms were ion exchange with UO22+ and surface complexion by -OH and -COOH. In addition, BR/HAP showed an excellent reusability, making it a promising candidate as a new sorbent for U(VI) removal from wastewater. In view of that, it would be interesting to perform future research to explore practical implications of this sorbent material regarding protection from environmental and public health issues related to that pollutant.

Does biochar accelerate the mitigation of greenhouse gaseous emissions from agricultural soil? - A global meta-analysis.

Greenhouse gaseous (GHGs) emissions from cropland soils are one of the major contributors to global warming. However, the extent and pattern of these climatic breakdowns are usally determined by the management practices in-place. The use of biochar on cropland soils holds a great promise for increasing the overall crop productivity. Nevertheless, biochar application to agricultural soils has grown in popularity as a strategy to off-set the negative feedback associated with agriculture GHGs emissions, i.e., CO2 (carbon dioxide), CH4 (methane), and N2O (nitrous oxide). Despite increasing efforts to uncover the potential of biochar to mitigate the farmland GHGs effects, there has been little synthesis of how different types of biochar affect GHGs fluxes from cropland soils under varied experimental conditions. Here, we presented a meta-analysis of the interactions between biochar and GHGs emissions across global cropland soils, with field experiments showing the strongest GHG mitigation potential, i.e. CO2 (RR = -0.108) and CH4 (RR = -0.399). The biochar pyrolysis temperature, feedstock, C: N ratio, and pH were also found to be important factors influencing GHGs emissions. A prominent reduction in N2O (RR = -0.13) and CH4 (RR = -1.035) emissions was observed in neutral soils (pH = 6.6-7.3), whereas acidic soils (pH ≤ 6.5) accounted for the strongest mitigation effect on CO2 compared to N2O and CH4 emissions. We also found that a biochar application rate of 30 t ha-1 was best for mitigating GHGs emissions while achieving optimal crop yield. According to our meta-analysis, maize crop receiving biochar amendment showed a significant mitigation potential for CO2, N2O, and CH4 emissions. On the other hand, the use of biochar had shown significant impact on the global warming potential (GWP) of total GHGs emissions. The current data synthesis takes the lead in analyzing emissions status and mitigation potential for three of the most common GHGs from cropland soils and demonstrates that biochar application can significantly reduce the emissions budget from agriculture.

Non-coding RNAs: Functional roles in the regulation of stress response in Brassica crops.

Brassica crops face a combination of different abiotic and biotic stresses in the field that can reduce plant growth and development by affecting biochemical and morpho-physiological processes. Emerging evidence suggests that non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), especially microRNAs (miRNAs) and long ncRNAs (lncRNAs), play a significant role in the modulation of gene expression in response to plant stresses. Recent advances in computational and experimental approaches are of great interest for identifying and functionally characterizing ncRNAs. While progress in this field is limited, numerous ncRNAs involved in the regulation of gene expression in response to stress have been reported in Brassica. In this review, we summarize the modes of action and functions of stress-related miRNAs and lncRNAs in Brassica as well as the approaches used to identify ncRNAs.